Squat racks in gyms

Dazbox · 17-09-2020 11:23am #1

Hi all

Just doing a hit of research.
Do you find that the squat rack is always full when you go to the gym?
Has your gym enough squat racks?
Are you allowed deadlift in your gym? Are there deadlift platforms?
Would you join a strength training⁶ gym?
Looking for some feedback.
Thanks

Black Sheep · 17-09-2020 12:46pm

Squat racks, deadlifting platforms and equipment generally required for proper strength training have become more common, as you're probably aware. Even the likes of FlyeFit would tend to offer almost everything that someone would require, and (before the pandemic) access to a rack was never an issue when I did a drop in.

In general I would say that in the Dublin area there is decent availability of gym facilities like we're talking about, although perhaps less so than normal just at the moment.

Aside from the budget chains like FlyeFit and commercial gyms you obviously do have dedicated facilities that offer a more powerlifting / bodybuilder type feel, as well. I think there's room for a few more gyms like these in the Dublin area, but I think location probably matters... No point in opening a gym like that next to the Hercules Club, for example.

However, outside of Dublin the situation is somewhat different. Where you based, OP?

Dazbox · 17-09-2020 11:00pm

I'm living on the cavan /Meath border near virginia. My thoughts are that strength equipment is scarce. I think strength training is not promoted enough for the very the very high effectiveness it has.

JayRoc · 17-09-2020 11:14pm

As a business model, I regret to say that a dedicated Strength Gym with a traditional "commercial-gym" style membership is probably not going to work.

I've never run a gym outside Dublin but I would imagine it could even be a harder job to turn a profit. Maybe I'm wrong.

Dazbox · 18-09-2020 11:14am

Thanks for reply. Can you give a few reasons why it wouldnt work? What if any could make it work?

silverharp · 18-09-2020 11:32am

could you keep you overhead costs and fit out costs to a minimum ? just a suitably sized warehouse and just stick the equipment in on the floor that's there. I get the feeling from watching US content that there seems to be segment for no frills lockup style gyms

Dazbox · 18-09-2020 2:44pm

Thats the plan, keep the set up costs to under 10000 if I can. I have a potential space which is perfect, small but not too small. I think the marketing aspect is vital and social media presence. I'm making my own deadlift platforms too which saves 100s.

Alf Veedersane · 18-09-2020 3:16pm

Dazbox wrote: »

I think strength training is not promoted enough for the very the very high effectiveness it has.

Therein lies the problem.

It's not promoted as much as it should be so the demand isn't where it would be.

I think you would need to think of something that is scalable, i.e. start small so that costs are low and you could accommodate training a small number of people. Then grow as demand grows.

Cill94 · 18-09-2020 3:38pm

Agree with the above there. I think the least risky option is to keep your day job and do the training part time out of your house or a very small unit.

Allow the gym to expand naturally as demand grows, and then you could eventually do it full time and go for the big warehouse set-up. Jumping straight into a big unit could be a big ask.

Zach Even-Esh did it this way I’m pretty sure. He has some podcasts and articles talking about it.

Dazbox · 19-09-2020 6:41pm

Cool thanks for the replies and advice , defo starting small. Somewhere near me started something similar but was aimed at power lifters. It never took off, promoting the benefits of strength training, making it accessible and not intimidating. I want the 50 yr old mother as much as the trained athlete.

Alf Veedersane · 19-09-2020 6:44pm

Dazbox wrote: »

Cool thanks for the replies and advice , defo starting small. Somewhere near me started something similar but was aimed at power lifters. It never took off, promoting the benefits of strength training, making it accessible and not intimidating. I want the 50 yr old mother as much as the trained athlete.

How do you plan to market what you're offering and where?

Wanting clients across demographics is one thing but getting them is a different matter.

Mellor · 20-09-2020 10:49am

Dazbox wrote: »

Thats the plan, keep the set up costs to under 10000 if I can.

10k would get you a good home gym setup.
For a commercial gym, you’d need to invest multiples of that.

Have you written a shopping list yet?

PCeeeee · 20-09-2020 10:58am

Mellor wrote: »

10k would get you a good home gym setup.
For a commercial gym, you’d need to invest multiples of that.

Have you written a shopping list yet?

Have to second this. I have a home gym. Squat rack. Bumpers. Rowing machine. Etc. Cost a lot less than 10k but the equipment is cheap and cheerful. It wouldn't last a month in a commercial gym.

A commercial power rack is almost a grand on its own.

the baby bull elephant · 20-09-2020 10:59am

I'd love to join a proper strength training gym, ideally one with strongman equipment such as stones, yoke and a log. I don't know of any such gyms in Dublin. However, I can imagine there's probably a decent reason such gyms are thin on the ground. Gyms are hard business' to make profitable and that probably doesn't get easier when you go off from the mainstream chain approach.

Brian Alsruhe and Alan Thrall did a series a few years ago on Youtube about setting up their gyms which might be worth looking at, even if it is from an American context.

Wildly Boaring · 20-09-2020 11:01am

Get an insurance quote before looking at equipment costs

Cill94 · 20-09-2020 11:09am

the baby bull elephant wrote: »

I'd love to join a proper strength training gym, ideally one with strongman equipment such as stones, yoke and a log. I don't know of any such gyms in Dublin. However, I can imagine there's probably a decent reason such gyms are thin on the ground. Gyms are hard business' to make profitable and that probably doesn't get easier when you go off from the mainstream chain approach.

About 7 years ago, there was an amazing gym in Blackrock called Ironside that had loads of strongman equipment like stones. Don't know how long it had been there, but I got about 6 months out of my membership before they had to close and were replaced by TNT (yikes).

As far as I'm aware, owner is the same guy who runs Southside in Sandyford. Southside is still a great gym, but you can see they've had to appeal to the general public a lot more by offering things like spin classes and boxercise.

Dazbox · 20-09-2020 2:36pm

Insurance is anywhere between 2 to 4k. As regards eqipment, I want 3 racks, 2 half and 1 power rack, a commerical bench rack, 2 deadlift platforms which I can make myself, 5 power bars, I have a SSB., plates, bumper plates , 1 trap bar, 1 football bar. I will get everything second hand if I can. The only thing i wont will be the bars.
Marketing wise i still need to research that. But i guess social media, gym open days etc. I'm not prepared to spend huge amounts, it would be silly. As mentioned, gyms are hard work to make profitable, start small and grow.

Mellor · 20-09-2020 3:56pm

Dazbox wrote: »

I want 3 racks, 2 half and 1 power rack, a commerical bench rack, 2 deadlift platforms which I can make myself, 5 power bars, I have a SSB., plates, bumper plates , 1 trap bar, 1 football bar.

That’s a start.
You’ll prob need to add a couple of adjustable or flat benches. A full set of Kettlebell. And a concept2 or assault/echo bike or similar.
Not essential but a set of rings would be a cheap way to add a body on the floor.

Black Sheep · 21-09-2020 9:07am

I'm not going to try to dissuade anyone from starting a new business, ever, because there's enough negativity out there. Some of it well founded, it must be said!

On the question of whether the general population will engage in strength training in Ireland, enough to make a small low-cost gym viable... I think a lot depends on the people involved. The public aren't buying the training, they're often buying the trainer and how they make them feel. I know that my own coach has a locally-based clientele that do strength training with him, the average age is 40+ and none of these people are online much, it is a business built on local word of mouth. It's predominantly personal training and small group training and I think that model probably makes the most sense.

The nature of the facility matters a lot too. Clean toilets, showers, decent changing facilities for female clients. I think these are non negotiable these days for any new gym set-up, whether it's a powerlifting gym, a TRX studio or a martial arts club. If you want more than 20 something men, the place needs to be 'nice'.

Good luck with it.

Black Sheep · 21-09-2020 9:11am

Cill94 wrote: »

About 7 years ago, there was an amazing gym in Blackrock called Ironside that had loads of strongman equipment like stones. Don't know how long it had been there, but I got about 6 months out of my membership before they had to close and were replaced by TNT (yikes).

As far as I'm aware, owner is the same guy who runs Southside in Sandyford. Southside is still a great gym, but you can see they've had to appeal to the general public a lot more by offering things like spin classes and boxercise.

Ironside was the ****, I used to love that place.

I remember going in and doing the free strongman workout they were offering when they opened, you got a chance to do all of the strongman type lifts, they had a set of the atlas stones and so on, and a rig at the back of the gym to lift a car.

Very nice gym in terms of the equipment albeit it was grimy as hell. Every time I went in there would be a forest of Monster cans surrounding all the equipment, and everything was covered in a sticky layer of spilled Red Bull. There was always the same 5-10 Blackrock College kids in training after school, and for them every day was arms

ongarite · 21-09-2020 11:03am

My local gym is heavily biased towards bodybuilding, olympic lifting and seems to doing very well from it but its ideally located in large population area of Dublin 15.
They have very good social media presence & as mentioned above made effort in making sure women's changing rooms were well presented & clean.

They started off buying lots of equipment, weights from China which are decent but have been slowly replacing them with Primal equipment in last while.

JayRoc · 22-09-2020 4:44pm

Cill94 wrote: »

About 7 years ago, there was an amazing gym in Blackrock called Ironside that had loads of strongman equipment like stones. Don't know how long it had been there, but I got about 6 months out of my membership before they had to close and were replaced by TNT (yikes).

As far as I'm aware, owner is the same guy who runs Southside in Sandyford. Southside is still a great gym, but you can see they've had to appeal to the general public a lot more by offering things like spin classes and boxercise.

Ironside was a great example of the sort of problems I'm talking about and how hard it is to make enough money from a "strength" gym using traditional membership formats.

A lot of people open the sort of gym that they would like to train in themselves. That is usually a bad idea because there isn't a market among the general public for it.

Ironside was a great place to train with great equipment. Stones, logs, car deadlift, monolift, you name it. But that kind of gym is essentially a vanity project in Ireland. It just doesn't attract enough members to cover your costs.

JayRoc · 22-09-2020 4:46pm

Black Sheep wrote: »

Ironside was the ****, I used to love that place.

I remember going in and doing the free strongman workout they were offering when they opened, you got a chance to do all of the strongman type lifts, they had a set of the atlas stones and so on, and a rig at the back of the gym to lift a car.

Very nice gym in terms of the equipment albeit it was grimy as hell. Every time I went in there would be a forest of Monster cans surrounding all the equipment, and everything was covered in a sticky layer of spilled Red Bull. There was always the same 5-10 Blackrock College kids in training after school, and for them every day was arms

Oh jesus, the sticky Monster cans everywhere....ðŸ€£ memories.

JayRoc · 22-09-2020 4:49pm

Dazbox wrote: »

Insurance is anywhere between 2 to 4k

I'd advise shopping around a lot for insurance. You might be able to do better than the above.

Marketing and market research should probably be your priority. Put together a good business plan and don't let your heart overrule your head.

Best of luck!

Squat racks in gyms

Comments